Middletown fire chief pleads guilty after alcohol-related arrest

Credit: DaytonDailyNews

Middletown Fire Chief Paul Lolli has pleaded guilty to a lesser charge after his arrest last year on suspicion of drunken driving.

Lolli pleaded guilty today to a lesser charge of reckless operation in Middletown Municipal Court before visiting Judge Robert Messham Jr. A second charge of speeding was dismissed.

WATCH: Cruiser cam shows Middletown fire chief’s OVI arrest

Lolli’s license was suspended for 180 days though he will be allowed to drive for work-related reasons. That suspension started on Dec. 16, 2016, the day of his arrest. He also was fined $250 plus court costs, the judge said.

Lolli and his attorney, Paris Ellis, refused to comment after the hearing.

Because Lolli is a city employee, a special prosecutor, Steve Runge, was brought in from Franklin.

The city suspended Lolli for five days without pay after officials reviewed a video from the arrest.

Lolli, who became fire chief in 2014 and has 25 years with the Middletown Division of Fire, initially was placed on paid administrative leave on suspicion of OVI, city officials said.

MORE: Middletown fire chief suspended for 5 days after alcohol allegation

A trooper with the Ohio State Highway Patrol stopped Lolli Dec. 16, 2016, about a block from his home on Central Avenue.

Video from the trooper’s cruiser shows Lolli struggling to complete field sobriety tests after he said he had “two beers” and had stopped drinking at midnight.

Lolli told the trooper he was sorry after he struggled to walk in a straight line.

“I’m the fire chief of Middletown, man. I’m sorry,” Lolli said.

Lolli had no prior disciplinary issues in his personnel file, according to Les Landen, Middletown’s law director.

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